Parking
No road access: Isle Royale is reached by boat or seaplane. Reach the Greenstone Ridge junction on foot from the island trail network; Lane Cove Campground has foot and canoe/kayak access, with no motorboat access.
Overview
About Lane Cove Trail
Why go
- A dramatic ridge-to-shore change in a short leg
- Shoreline campsites look across Lane Cove and its islands
Heads up
- Steep grade makes a return climb much harder
- Wetland boardwalks and no food service add backcountry planning
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Isle Royale map
Full mapElevation594–1,066 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
8 active Isle Royale alerts
- ClosureSeasonal park closure begins November 1Isle Royale closes to public use November 1–April 15 because extreme winter weather threatens visitor safety; the closure extends 4.5 miles into Lake Superior from the island.Official details
- ClosureCamping closures at east-end campgrounds and Zone 9Camping restrictions are in effect at four east-end campgrounds and Off-trail Camping Zones 9–13 and 30–38 because of increased human-wildlife interactions and food-storage concerns.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Isle Royale Tour Guide
Your drive to Lane Cove Trail, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Isle Royale National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
More stories near here in the app
- Rock Harbor Lodge and Scoville Point
- Built for the Dive
- Skiing for Science
- Copper Before the Mine Shafts
- 17 audio storiesacross Isle Royale’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Moose, Wolf, Bald Eagle, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 39 trails, 83 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Lane Cove Trail
Take the ridge-to-shore legLane Cove Trail is a 2.
Lane Cove Trail is a 2.3-mile one-way descent from the Greenstone Ridge Trail to the five-site Lane Cove Campground on Isle Royale’s north shore. The payoff is the change from a high, birch-covered ridge to a small Lake Superior cove. Allow about 1.5–2 hours one way. It works best as a backpacking leg; for a standalone day hike, retrace it for 4.6 miles, including the steep climb back.
The north side drops fastThe trail leaves the ridge on steep switchbacks through tall birches, with a Lake Superior view…
The trail leaves the ridge on steep switchbacks through tall birches, with a Lake Superior view opening to the north before the forest closes in. Farther down, the grade eases into smaller ridges with wet ground between them. The path is uneven, and wet tread can be slippery, so take your time on the descent, especially with a full pack.
Marsh, then the coveNear Lane Cove, the route crosses swampy ground on thin boardwalks and turns through woods…
Near Lane Cove, the route crosses swampy ground on thin boardwalks and turns through woods toward the shore. The campground sits beside the water, with islands across the cove; on a clear day, Thunder Bay in Canada is visible across Lake Superior. From the shoreline, frame the cove with the near-shore islands rather than pointing straight across open water.
Plan for a remote campThere is no road access or food store here.
There is no road access or food store here. Isle Royale is reached by boat or seaplane; reach the ridge junction on foot from the island trail network, while Lane Cove has foot and canoe/kayak access. Carry your food and treat water before drinking. Overnight stays require a permit, and Lane Cove’s annual one-night limit applies June 1 through September 21. Pets are prohibited on Isle Royale.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Isle Royale
308 sightingsMooseMost seen around 8 PMSighting map
93 sightingsWolfMost seen around 8 PMSighting map
77 sightingsBald EagleMost seen around 5 PMSighting map
150 sightingsLoonMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
24 sightingsTrumpeter SwanMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
71 sightingsBeaverMost seen around 8 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Isle Royale. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
